Meeting on a Bad Day
by Mikauzoran
Summary: When Ran gets a new boyfriend and Hakuba and Aoko start dating, Shinichi and Kaito are both left heartbroken with only each other for comfort. Watch as they slowly break down each other's walls and become friends…and then maybe more.
1. Becoming Friends

Mikau: Hello there and welcome! Thanks so much for taking an interest in my work. This one I'm planning on being a little two-shot. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up in about a week or so. I shouldn't be too busy now that finals are over. Well, without further ado, enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned it, Heiji would show up more often. I love his accent. Hearing it reminds me of all my neighbors, classmates, and students and how they spoke when I was in Kyoto.

…

Becoming Friends

Bad day didn't even begin to cover it. Ran had come home with a big announcement: the captain of the karate team had asked her out. When "Conan-kun" had made big-eyed inquiries into what she planned to tell "Shinichi-niichan", Ran had just snorted and made a rather rude remark.

And so Shinichi was downstairs in his favorite booth at Poirot's, sulking not only because he'd lost the love of his life but also because he couldn't even have a cup of coffee to drown his misery in.

With a giant sigh, the great detective blew bubbles in his mug of chocolate milk.

Unexpectedly a red rose appeared.

Shinichi slowly looked up but saw only his own face grinning back at him, as if he were gazing into a mirror from his past. He blinked, taking off his glasses and cleaning them on his shirt.

"I'm Kuroba Kaito. Pleased to meet you," his doppelganger laughed.

Shinichi replaced his glasses and blinked again. Then it dawned upon him. "Kid!" he screeched.

"Where?!" "Kuroba" exclaimed, whipping his head around to look in excitement. Finding no one, Shinichi's double looked back at the gradeschooler with a pout. "Where?"

"You!" Shinichi snapped, standing on his seat and pointing at his dining companion.

"Ha!" Kuroba snorted, pushing Shinichi's finger away and tucking the previously proffered rose into the smaller boy's chest pocket. "I wish. He's my hero. Nah, name's Kuroba Kaito. What's yours?"

"Kaitou Kid, more like it," Shinichi muttered. "Edogawa Conan. I'm surprised you don't recognize me from the heists."

"Oh, I do; it's just rude to start up a conversation without being properly introduced. I know full well who you are," Kuroba chuckled.

"So you admit it, then," Shinichi snorted.

"I never admit anything." Kuroba shrugged.

"You're just as insufferable in real life." Shinichi rolled his eyes.

"Geez, I'm not Kid," Kid laughed. "_You're_ just as bad as Hakuba. He's accused me of being Kid-sama too. Like, every day for a while there until the time he handcuffed me to himself during that one heist."

Shinichi blinked once more. "You…know Hakuba Saguru the Superintendent's son?"

Kuroba nodded sharply. "Yeah. The jerk's got a stick shoved somewhere real uncomfortable, if you asked me. He's my resident pain in the butt. We're classmates…and love rivals, unfortunately. Nakamori-keibu's daughter, Aoko."

Shinichi frowned. "Kid is classmates with Hakuba-san and dating Nakamori-keibu's daughter? Go away. You're making my head hurt."

"At least it's a distraction from your heart…. And I'm not Kid," Kuroba added.

"Go away. I'm having a bad day." Shinichi used his "little kid disguise" to get away with pouting.

"So I gathered," Kuroba snorted with a roll of his eyes. "You've got heartbreak written all over your face; that's why I stopped in here…. Care to talk about it?"

"Ran's got a boyfriend, and it's not me," Shinichi sighed, blowing more bubbles in his milk.

The other boy winced. "Man. Sorry."

Shinichi shrugged. "It's not like things were working out between us with me like this. I'm glad she's happy, but…crap, this sucks."

"I bet." Kaito was unsure if he should be asking who "Ran" was or what "Conan" meant by being "like this". Truthfully, he already knew, but…_he_ wasn't supposed to know. "Anything I can do?"

"Coffee," Shinichi answered immediately. "Buy me coffee and I'll love you forever."

Kuroba blinked. "Seriously? You're kind of easy."

Shinichi sent a stale glare across the table. "Don't make me beg. I want coffee."

"Geez, you _are_ serious," Kuroba hummed thoughtfully. "Coming right up. How'd you like it?"

"Strong enough to strip paint," Shinichi replied levelly.

Kid blinked again, trying to decide whether or not to ask if the detective were joking. "Okay. Battery acid. Got it. I personally like mine with predominately cream and sugar and only a drop or two of coffee, but to each their own, I guess."

A few minutes later, Shinichi was blissfully sipping his varnish remover as Kaito looked on in awe. "You weren't kidding. You really do like the dark stuff."

Shinichi only hummed contentedly.

"At least you look less destitute now," Kuroba mumbled, picking up the abandoned cup of chocolate milk and downing it. "You'd looked like someone had kicked your puppy when I walked by and saw you through the window."

Shinichi's eyes went wide. "K-k-k-k-k-kiss! Indirect kiss!"

Kaito could only stare. "Really? How old are you, Tantei-kun? Like, nine?"

"Eight!" Conan snapped, looking like there was a bad taste in his mouth that he desperately wanted to get out. "Gross!"

"Gross is dealing with dead stuff day in and day out. I have superb dental hygiene; I'm not gross," the Shinichi-lookalike sniffed indignantly. "Besides, _I'm_ the one drinking milk that _you_ blew bubbles in. If there's anyone who should be screaming 'Gross!', it's me. Indirect kisses are not gross." A mischievous smirk started in the corner of Kuroba's mouth and spread across his lips. "It would be different if I reached across the table and planted one on you."

Conan shuddered, eyeing his companion warily. "You wouldn't dare, Kid."

"Kuroba," Kaito corrected with a chuckle. "And probably not…in public."

The detective crinkled his nose up in disgust. "You know, there's nothing gross about solving murders…and it's not my fault that they pop up everywhere I go…. It just…happens."

Kuroba frowned, glancing around the restaurant as if he expected someone to drop dead on the spot. Come to think of it, people only ever died at heists when "Conan" was around. "That must be…stressful."

"I feel terrible saying this, but…it adds excitement to my life," Shinichi sighed.

Kaito raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, I spend my days in first grade. There's not much mental stimulation there for a detective." Conan raced to his own defense. "I don't _like_ it when people drop dead around me like mosquitoes, but catching the culprit makes sure that justice is done and gives me a reason not to bang my head against a wall in boredom."

Kuroba nodded, humming pensively. "Do you like riddles?"

Conan rolled his eyes. "You _know_ I do, Kid."

"Kuroba."

"You _know_ I do, _Kuroba_. Kid heists are some of my favorite cases. People don't usually get hurt, it's a wonderful adrenaline rush, and most everything that gets stolen is returned." Conan smirked, setting down his coffee mug. "You're not a bad guy, you know. You're nuts—that's for sure—and I don't quite get why you take stuff only to give it back, but you're a good guy."

"You mean _Kid-sama_." Kaito returned the smirk. "But, yeah. I'm a good guy too…and kinda nuts. Wanna play a game with me, Tantei-kun?"

"What sort of game?" Conan's ears seemed to perk up at the proposition.

"Kind of like hide and seek. I'll give you a clue as to where and when to meet me, and you come on that date and time to that place. Sound fun?"

Conan gave a genuine smile. "Yeah. Yeah, it does. What's my first clue?"

Kaito bit his lip in thought. "Hmm…tomorrow, when the hands that appeared to vanish that night reach toward the sky and she cries out to God, find me sitting at her feet. How's that?"

Conan frowned, puzzling over "hands"; however, it took less than a minute to solve the riddle. "I'll be there at noon. Make the riddle harder next time, Ki—Kuroba."

The magician shrugged. "I thought it was pretty okay for coming up with it off the top of my head."

Conan smiled softly. "Listen, I have to get back home before Ran starts worrying about me, but thank you for coming in and talking with me and...and for the coffee."

"My pleasure. Need me to walk you home? It can be dangerous for kids at this time of night in Beika, and it sounds like you've got some pretty bad luck," Kaito offered.

"Thanks, but I live just upstairs. I doubt something terrible's going to happen to me between here and the staircase. Thanks, Kuroba." Conan gave one last smile before finishing his coffee and getting up to go. "It was…nice hanging out with you. I look forward to our meeting tomorrow."

"Same here, Tantei-kun." Kuroba gave a smart salute and his trademark grin.

…

"We first met here, didn't we?" Shinichi mused as he came to a stop by Kaito, sitting on the steps of the old clock tower.

The magician chuckled, resting his chin in his hand. "Tantei-kun, we met last night in a coffee shop."

Conan grinned sheepishly. "I mean…Kudo Shinichi-niichan told me that he first met the Kaitou Kid here. Kid had sent out a heist notice for the tower to protect it from being demolished, and Shinichi-niichan came and nearly caught him…. In retrospect, he shouldn't have shot at him."

"Just like Kid-sama shouldn't of tasered you," Kaito sighed, looking down at his feet. "He probably wasn't thinking at the time. No matter how big that brain of yours is, your body is still just a kid's. It was dangerous."

Conan shrugged. "I forgive him. I was fine. I mean, nothing bad happened. It could have, but it didn't."

Kuroba looked up and blinked a little stupidly before breaking out into a wide grin. "Thanks, Tantei-kun. I'm pretty sure the whole shooting thing wasn't such a big deal either."

"Good. I'll be sure to pass that along to Shinichi-niichan," Conan chuckled. "So…what are we doing here?"

"Going to lunch at that family restaurant over there?" Kuroba nodded towards the little shop across the street. "My treat?"

Conan looked and nodded his approval. "Yeah, sure. Thank you, Kuroba."

"Don't mention it. I'm glad I could help get you out of the house." Kuroba shrugged, pushing himself up to standing.

"You sound a little sad, Kuroba," Conan noted.

"Can't get anything past you detectives, can I?" Kaito chuckled weakly, looking up at the clock tower. "Nakamori Aoko texted me this morning. She said that Hakuba had asked her out and she'd said 'yes'."

"Kuroba…" Shinichi was at a loss for words. "…is there anything I can do?"

"Tomorrow…Sunday. Meet me in the garden of the town named for the nymph that loved Narcissus. Meet me where the foxes gather in the woods when the arrow aims east…. Is that a better riddle, Tantei-kun?"

Conan nodded. "I'll I've got is Echo and 3:15 for now…. You don't mean Ekoda, do you? I'll have to do some investigating when I get home. Is there anything I can do _now_?"

"Let's get lunch and chitchat," Kaito suggested. "And then after lunch I'm going to eat an entire chocolate ice cream parfait by myself."

Conan smiled sadly. "Sounds good. Race you to the restaurant?"

"On three, or three, then go?" Kaito smirked.

"On three." Conan smirked right back, taking his mark.

"Three!" Kuroba shouted, taking off.

…

"Do you come to this Inari shrine often?" Shinichi asked softly, not wanting to startle Kaito as the (currently) taller of the teens stared off into space.

He looked so peaceful leaning against the bright red torii gate and looking up at the late September leaves just starting to change their color. Sunlight was streaming in through the breaks in the leaf cover, lighting up the magician's face and making his hair gleam.

Kaito smiled sadly. "My old man used to bring me here when I was a kid…. He passed when I was eight."

Shinichi nodded, biting his lip. "I'm sorry."

"I have a favor to ask." Kuroba turned to face his friendly rival.

"Sure. Go ahead," Shinichi replied when it seemed like the magician wasn't going to say anything.

"Chase me," Kaito whispered, looking away with a bit of a blush.

Conan blinked and then smiled. "Sure. What do I get when I catch you?"

Kaito snorted. "'When'? You'll only catch me _if_ I let you, Tantei-kun…. What do ya want?"

The detective chewed on the inside of his cheek in thought. "Hn…buy me coffee?"

At this Kaito laughed. "You _are_ easy, Tantei-kun! Alright. One cup of coffee, _if_ you catch me. Go!"

Kaito took off, zigzagging through the trees, sometimes hooking his arm around a trunk and using his momentum to swing his body in a new direction. The clown hopped up into the trees and leapt from branch to branch like a monkey.

"Not fair!" Conan shouted. "I'm too short to climb up there and get you!"

"There were no rules!" Kaito laughed with glee.

Just then, the branch he had landed on broke, sending the magician back to the ground hard.

Conan tried to throw on the breaks but only ended up tumbling and landing on top of Kaito.

"Ughf," Kaito coughed, the air having been entirely knocked out of him.

"Hey, you okay?" Shinichi cried out in concern for the magician beneath him.

Kaito smiled. "Looks like you caught me after all, Meitantei."

"Oi, Kuroba, you sure you're not hurt?" the detective pressed.

Kaito just shrugged. "Only my pride. Don't worry. I take spills like that all the time; I know how to fall." The magician picked up the detective that was straddling him and set the smaller boy down beside him. "When did you want your coffee?"

"Wednesday night?" Conan asked hopefully.

Kaito nodded, a peaceful smile taking over his face. "Thanks for that. I feel better now."

"G-Good," Shinichi stuttered, studying the contours of his companion's face.

"Look at that cloud." Kaito pointed with a chuckle. "It's a whale."

"Looks like a regular fish to me."

Kaito shuddered. "No. It's definitely a whale."

"If anything, it's a dolphin," Conan argued just for the sake of arguing.

"It's a whale," Kaito pouted. "…Well, how about that dragon?"

"Lizard." Conan smirked.

"Dragon," Kaito snorted. "Look! Look at that platypus!"

Conan opened his mouth to debate but promptly closed it once more. "Geez. You're right. That is one hell of a platypus."

"What about the snake next to the not-lizard?"

"Earthworm," Conan replied as flatly as he could.

Kaito glared at his friend before pushing the boy down into the grass. "Your angle's all wrong. Look again. Look at that giant bunny rabbit."

"Hn." Conan moved his head over to rest against Kaito's. "Ah. I see it now."

"Told ya so," Kaito tittered.

…

"I don't feel comfortable going to an art museum with you," Conan stated blandly over the phone once he had figured out the latest clue that Kuroba had sent him.

Kaito just laughed. "If I were Kid and if I were going to steal anything, I would have sent a heist notice. We're just going to walk around and then get coffee at their café. You said you wanted to meet for coffee on Wednesday, didn't you?"

"I was thinking we could just go to Poirot again, Kuroba," Conan explained.

"Yeah, but I wanna go to the art museum. They've got some cool stuff I want to check out," Kaito pushed.

"More like case for your next heist," the detective grumbled.

Kaito rolled his eyes. "Come on, Tantei-kun. Come to the museum with me. I'll be waiting there at five o'clock, and if you stand me up, I'll get really upset."

"What is this, a date?" the boy detective snorted. "Fine. I'll be there, Kuroba, but don't make me regret it."

"Trust me, the coffee's top notch," the magician assured. "And I'm not Kid."

…

The same old boring art museum that Shinichi had been to nearly a hundred times took on a new life with Kuroba there beside him. The magician tugged him around from one piece to the next, gushing about the composition, use of light and color, subject, artist, and time period.

"_Just what you'd expect of an art thief,"_ Conan mused.

"This one's my favorite." Kaito came to a stop in front of a painting about seven feet wide and five feet tall. "You see some new aspect of it every time."

It was a futuristic city made up of towers of buildings, one on top of the other, all connected by walkways suspended in the air. There were flying machines and blimps, cogs and gears, and all sorts of balloons. It was an odd, mismatched picture that somehow seemed to fit together seamlessly. It was so detailed. Kaito was right; you could probably find something new in the picture every time you looked at it.

"Wow," was all Conan could think to say.

"I know, right?" Kuroba chuckled, looking on in awe. "Just think of the amount of time and creativity that went into this thing. It's amazing, right?"

Conan nodded, looking at the tiny telescope placed on top of one of the innumerable rooftops. "You know, I've probably passed this by dozens of times and never even noticed when I came here on fieldtrips. Thanks for playing tour guide, Kuroba. This has been a really enjoyable evening."

"Yeah? I'm glad." The magician beamed. "Ready to go get some phenomenal coffee?"

"I'm always ready for coffee."

"I knew you'd say that," Kaito chuckled softly. "This-a way."

…

"You've got a huuuge sweet tooth, don't you?" Conan snickered ten minutes later as Kaito sighed blissfully, savoring his hot chocolate.

"Ooooh yeah," the prankster confirmed. "It's my weakness. Hook me up to an IV drip of milk chocolate, and I'd be a happy camper. I could live on sugar."

"Ha! No wonder you're so hyper," Shinichi snorted. "I bet you were a handful as a kid."

Kaito shrugged. "I behaved pretty well. My old man taught me to be a gentleman…. He also taught me to be a prankster too, but I knew how to stay out of the bad kinds of trouble…. A skill I have since lost in a bad way."

"You're in trouble?" Thin worry lines formed on Conan's brow.

"Ah…no…I…" Kaito bit his lip, trying to come up with some clever half-truth.

"Come to think of it, I read a while ago somewhere that Kid's been shot at a couple times." The frown deepened.

"I'm…not Kid," Kuroba argued weakly.

Shinichi blinked. "Oh…. Right. Sorry."

Kaito shrugged it off half-hearted. "No worries."

"Could you tell me about your father, Kuroba? If you don't mind, I mean. You sound like you really look up to him."

Kaito's eyes lit up, and they spent the next twenty minutes talking about Kuroba Touichi.

It was very informative, clearing up a lot of the mystery that was Kuroba Kaito for the detective.

…

November had come to Tokyo, and so had Hattori Heiji. The Osakan detective showed up at the Mouri Detective Agency front door one Friday midmorning.

"Don't you have school? Ever?" Conan blinked slowly a few times when he saw his best friend standing where he should not have been.

"I'm skippin'," Hattori snorted, hands on his hips. "I've come t' meet Kuroba."

Conan blinked again. So much for his lazy day off school. "…Why?"

"Come on, Kudo. I'm yer best friend. You gotta introduce me t' yer new girlfriend sometime or another, right?" Hattori looked down expectantly.

Conan's entire face went red. "K-Kuroba's not my—"

Heiji laughed, bending down to tussle Conan's hair. "—Yeah, sure. I believe you. You only go on and on and on about her every time I talk to you. At the very least, I consider her competition. She's movin' in on my turf as your best bud, so I wanna meet her t' size her up, okay? How's that?"

Conan sighed, knowing he wasn't going to win. "Fine. Kuroba's at school. They've got a half-day today, so we'll head on over in an hour or so.

…

"Which one is she?" Heiji pestered, scanning the crowd, looking back and forth and back and forth. Honestly, he kind of looked like a rather excitable prairie dog.

Conan just chuckled. "See the two brunettes walking with Hakuba-san?"

Hattori's eyes flickered to his blonde nemesis and then to the mousy brunette girl beside him. He blinked. "Hey, Kudo, she looks exactly like Nee-chan! No wonder you're so smitten with her."

Before Shinichi could correct his friend, the Osakan marched right over to the trio and held out his hand to Aoko. "Hey there! Name's Hattori Heiji. I'm a friend of Kud—C-C-Conan-kun's. He's been telling me all about you. Pleasure t' finally meet ya, Kuroba-chan."

The Ekoda High students all looked on in confusion.

Conan rolled his eyes. "Oi, Hattori!"

Kaito smirked, stepping forward. "All good stuff, I hope? He's mentioned you a couple times too. Nice to meet you, Hattori."

Now it was Heiji's turn to be puzzled until Shinichi stepped in and explained.

"Hattori Heiji, meet Kuroba Kaito."

The Osakan looked back and forth between the detective and magician. "THAT's Kuroba?!" He looked the other regular-sized teen up and down. "You're a dude!"

Kaito just laughed. "Yeah, last time I checked."

"Don't be fooled," Hakuba Saguru chimed in. "Kuroba's pretty convincing in drag."

The magician stuck his tongue out at his classmate before turning his attention to Conan. "What's up, Tantei-kun?"

"My idiot demanded to be introduced to you, so here we are," Shinichi sighed.

"Aoko-chan and I were just about to go on a date that I believe Kuroba intended to crash," Hakuba informed. "If you'd like, we could always make it a double…plus Hattori."

"Aww, thanks, Haku-chan!" Kaito sang, scooping up Conan.

"Please don't call me that," Hakuba sighed, resigned to his fate so long as he kept Kuroba as a friend.

"It'll be more fun with more people," Aoko added, turning to Hattori. "Aoko's name is Nakamori Aoko, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you, Hattori-kun."

"Pleasure…." Hattori was still a little out of it. "But…Kuroba's a guy?"

"Conan-kun and Kaito aren't really dating. They're all joking in bad taste," Aoko explained, scrunching up her nose. "Kaito's girl-crazy."

"I'm not that bad," the magician himself pouted.

"Yes, yes you are," Hakuba sighed. "Besides, Edogawa-kun is too young for you at the moment."

"'At the moment' being the operative words," Kaito snorted, holding the shrunken detective a little tighter.

"Kaito's just playing around," Aoko giggled. "Kaito and Conan-kun are like brothers."

"I see," Hattori mumbled.

"Where are we going?" Kaito poked Hakuba in the arm with his free hand.

"I was thinking we could go to Nancy's Café. You really liked their milkshakes the last time I took you there, didn't you?" the Brit replied.

Kaito nodded enthusiastically. "Let's go already!"

…

**| | .**

(^.^)

( : )

Mikau: Snowman emot! Well, what did you think? Mostly it's just some nice fluffy moments between Conan and Kaito, but that's good now and then too, right? Anyway, thank you so much for reading, and if you have a minute as you exit, please drop me a review and let me know what you thought. As previous readers can testify, I take my readers' opinions under serious consideration when I'm writing, and they really help me know what I'm doing right/wrong so that I can give you better work product. Thanks again, and take care! Have a great holiday season everyone!


	2. Becoming More

Mikau: Hey there everyone! Merry Christmas to all whom that it applies! To all others, Happy Wednesday! I hope you're all having a great day. First and foremost, I want to thank you all for the overwhelming support. Thank you especially to reviewers: sCyanide, Assasin8, Eyeinthesky, bluecandy145, Bunnyz-chan, hizmit12-waterlilly3721, and GeekyGenius. And now, without further ado, the second and final chapter! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned it, I'd have so much fun coming up with new outfits for Conan. I'd be as bad as his mom, dressing him up. But, he's just so adorable! Am I right?

…

Becoming More

"So you're a magician?" Heiji raised an eyebrow at Kaito who was holding Conan and feeding him the cherry from his milkshake.

"Yep," Kaito chirped. "My old man was the best in the world, so I've been studying since I could hold a pack of cards to be just like him. I think I've gotten pretty good, myself." Kaito pulled a full deck out of Conan's ear, fanning it out for all to see.

"He's pretty impressive," the shrunken detective boasted, opening his mouth to be spoon-fed another bite of ice cream. "You should see him walk midair or teleport or make himself disappear. Not all of his tricks are that original, but even the trite ones he pulls off with such amazing technique. You've got to give him credit."

"Aww, shucks, Tantei-kun," Kaito chuckled, giving the miniature sleuth a squeeze.

"Those tricks are all well and good, but I believe his most mind-boggling one to be when he makes an entire chocolate lava cake disappear in ten seconds flat," Hakuba sniggered, earning an eye roll from his girlfriend and a proud smirk from the magician himself.

"Don't encourage him, Hakuba-kun." Aoko clucked her tongue and shook her head.

"Has anyone ever told ya that ya look like Kudo Shinichi?" Hattori quickly changed subjects, pursuing his former line of inquiry.

"Yeah, I've been confused for him a time or two whenever I've gone to Beika and have had the misfortune to stumble upon a corpse. Though, they're kind of everywhere in Beika; ya kind of have to watch your step for fear of tripping over them." Kaito turned to Hakuba. "I don't want you going to Beika. Bat-shit crazy stuff goes down in Beika, and I don't want you having any part in it."

"Dually noted," the blonde hummed, appreciating his friend's concern but also feeling a tad insulted at Kuroba's overprotectiveness. Saguru could hold his own with any of the other high school detectives, thank you very much.

"So, what you're sayin' is that ya could easily disguise yourself as Kudo and impersonate 'im, right?" Hattori pressed.

"I guess." Kaito shrugged. "If you gave me some colored contacts and a cement truck's worth of hair gel. Have you seen his hair? I mean, seriously. It's as bad as Tantei-kun's!"

"And what's wrong with my hair?" Conan piped up.

"It's so…neat!" Kaito said the word as if it were dirty.

Conan frowned, an eyebrow lifted as if begging the question, _"Seriously?"_ He took a look at Kaito's own messy locks and his frown shifted into an amused smirk. "I guess that would be a problem for you. You'd need at least that much gel if you were going to try to impersonate Shinichi-niichan."

"Ya think?" Kaito chuckled, running a hand through his own hair. "Not a hair is out of place on that guy's head. Do you seriously think I could tame these wild strands into a do that manicured? It'd take me hours!"

"_Or thirty seconds, you quick-change wizard, you,"_ Conan mentally tittered.

...

After the café, the group headed to the local shopping center and hung out at the arcade for an hour or so until the sun was just barely still visible on the horizon. They made their way back to the train station and were just about to say their goodbyes and part ways when the Osakan detective suddenly turned to the magician.

"You're the Kaitou Kid, aren't you?" Hattori sighed, based on his observations during the evening and his interrogation of the other teen.

"He is not," Hakuba growled and protectively wedged himself between Kaito and Heiji, surprising everyone, even himself.

They all stared in silence for nearly a full minute.

"Ahem. I mean to say that Kuroba Kaito cannot possibly be the Kaitou Kid. I have done thorough research and can prove in a court of law, if need be, that Kuroba Kaito is not the Kaitou Kid. So that's the end of it."

Kaito caught Hakuba's eye and smiled softly.

Hakuba sheepishly smiled back.

"Right. Well, Aoko's going home," Aoko announced dryly, putting an end to the tender moment. "Goodnight, guys. It was nice meeting you, Hattori-kun." She waved over her shoulder as she walked off without further ado or acknowledgement of her boyfriend.

"Goodnight, then," Hakuba muttered, suddenly looking irritated. "Is it just me, or does she treat me like I'm invisible when she doesn't have a use for me?"

Kaito bit his lip, squeezing Conan a bit tighter. "She's…probably…probably just annoyed because the idiot with an accent brought up Kid."

"Oi!" aforementioned idiot protested his new nickname.

"I wonder if that's really it," the blonde exhaled slowly, brow furrowing. "Sometimes I find myself thinking that she only agreed to go out with me in order to make you jealous, Kuroba."

"It's all in your head, Haku-chan," Kaito assured, mussing his friend's hair. "Don't worry."

"Speakin' of girlfriends…" With his hands on his hips, Hattori stared Kaito down. "Can I have a word with ya for a sec?"

"Huh?" Kaito raised an eyebrow in utter confusion. "Excuse me, what exactly do you have to talk to me about that pertains to girlfriends?"

"Jus'…c'mon," Hattori grumbled, taking Conan away and setting him down next to Hakuba before grabbing Kaito by the arm and dragging him off.

"No offense, Edogawa-kun, but I dislike your friend entirely…especially the way he manhandles my best friend and accuses him of being an international jewel thief," Hakuba snorted. "As if I would ever be friends with a criminal."

Shinichi smiled ironically. "Yeah. He's just a little overprotective, is all…but…in Hattori's defense, it's not like they're false charges. It's just that Hattori doesn't know any better to keep his mouth shut about it like we do."

Hakuba swallowed hard. "…You…you knew? Since when?"

"Since he appeared to me as Kuroba Kaito. I was having a rotten day, and then, out of the blue, he came. It was several months ago now, but… And, you know, Kuroba's not a criminal. He's a good man. That's why neither of us have done anything with our knowledge. Because you wouldn't…be friends with a criminal, I mean, but he's your best friend, right?" The young sleuth gave the seemingly older one an encouraging smile.

Saguru returned the gesture and nodded. "I'm glad you already know…about Kid. This makes things a lot easier. I would hate to see Kaito hurt. I mean 'Kuroba'!" Hakuba practically yelped when he realized his slip of the tongue. "Kuroba. I don't want Kuroba to get hurt."

"By me?" Conan blinked, looking up innocently at the much taller teen. "What do you mean, Hakuba-san?"

"He…" A troubled expression made itself at home on Saguru's face. "You're…very mature for your age, Edogawa-kun. You know that, right?"

Conan nodded, hoping the British sleuth didn't have much more to say about his non-child-like behavior.

"You…don't happen to be interested in…romance yet, are you?" Hakuba fidgeted subtly.

Conan gave his crush's friend a knowing smile. "You mean Kuroba. You want to know if I'm interested in Kaito because you see the way we act with each other and you think he's serious. You care for him deeply and don't want him getting hurt by some bratty eight year-old."

Saguru nodded slowly, an embarrassed blush rising on his cheeks. "It's as you say. He's never mentioned having feelings for you, so I do not know anything for sure, but…and I may be completely naïve about love, but I believe that you are something more than just a dear friend or rival, like myself, to him. I believe you've become very important to him, indeed, so…I'm worried for him. I'm worried about him."

"But you're not grossed out by the idea of your best friend being involved with a little kid?" Conan asked directly.

Hakuba thought about it for a moment and shook his head. "Kaito is still…still Kaito. And it's not like he has a thing for little boys or anything. The thing he likes is you, not your body. If indeed he is in love, it's your mind. He has a way of seeing through people like that. He saw through me like a wet sheet…through my mask…through my cocky attitude…through all my long-practiced play acting. He saw through me, and he sees through you too. It doesn't matter if you're a woman or a man…young or old…he sees the real you in there, and that's the person he's grown fond of. But…what do you think of _him_, Edogawa-kun?"

"Hakuba-san…I'm still not completely sure, but…I've grown pretty fond of him too, so…I don't think you have to worry too much. I'm really not as young as I seem. Like you said, I'm mature for my age, so I'm perfectly capable of having a serious relationship with Kuroba, if it comes to that. For now, I'm still kind of in the middle of a rebound period, so that's probably not the best idea, but…Kuroba's helping me through it, and, one day, the timing might just be right for the two of us to become something more than just friends."

Hakuba nodded, blushing slightly as he stuck his hands in his pockets. "Just, until then, don't lead Kuroba on unnecessarily. Be careful with him. Please."

"Hakuba-san," Conan giggled. "Are you sure that _you're_ not the one with feelings for Kuroba?"

Saguru's entire face exploded in a burst of crimson. "N-No! I merely admire him greatly! I respect him, and I…I…he's my friend." His voice faded into a whisper. "I've never had a true friend like that before that sees the real me and still likes me just the way I am. He's my friend, and I care about him immensely, so…"

"Sorry," Conan chuckled, feeling a little bad for playing with the other teen. "I'm sorry. I was just teasing, Hakuba-san. I'm glad that Kuroba has such a great friend like you looking after him. Thank you, Hakuba-san."

"Uh…the same here." Saguru gave a small flustered bow before glancing anxiously in the direction that Kaito and Heiji had gone. "I do hope everything's okay with those two…."

"Un," Conan agreed, peering after them.

Just a few minutes later the pair returned, looking no worse for wear.

Shinichi gave Kaito a curious raise of the eyebrow to which the magician replied with a self-conscious smile as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"See ya, Tantei-kun." Kaito sent a mock salute and a wink his friend's way before taking ahold of Hakuba's tie and tugging the detective along behind him. "Come on, Haku-chan. I'll walk you home."

"K-Kuroba! I'm not a dog; unhand my tie," Saguru sputtered. "And your residence is in the opposite direction. I am not a young damsel in distress. I do not need you to escort me."

"You look like you wanna talk, so shut up and let me walk you home," Kaito chuckled, delighting in Hakuba's rattled state.

The blonde detective quickly ran out of steam and submitted to the brunette's will.

Heiji sighed once they were gone, turning to look skeptically down at his buddy. "So Kuroba's a dude, huh? Did havin' Nee-chan break up with you really break ya that bad? Knock some screws loose?"

"Hattori!" Shinichi shrieked in utter mortification. "And just what the hell did you say to him, anyway?!"

"Told 'im t' back off," the Osakan snorted, crossing his arms. "I let him know just what I thought of him trying to get into little boys' pants and all that."

"Hattori!" Had Shinichi been his rightful height, he would have decked the other teen. As it stood, he had to settle for kicking his fellow detective in the shins. "You didn't! Tell me you didn't! I'm NOT a little kid!"

"But he doesn't know that," Heiji sniggered, dodging Conan's attacks. "I'm just lookin' out for ya, Kudo. That Kuroba's a pervert. He's been preying on you, taking advantage of you while yer all messed up over Nee-chan."

"He has not!" Conan exclaimed through gritted teeth. "Hattori, stay the hell out of my love life. Kuroba's an important friend to me at the very least, and he's supported me wholeheartedly through this whole ordeal. How dare you say shit like that to him!"

"K-Kudo…he's messing with your head," Heiji stressed softly, holding his hands up at chest-level in self-defense.

"He is not!" the shrunken sleuth seethed. "Listen up, Hattori! I…I'm falling in love with him, and I won't have you messing this all up for me! I realize you're trying to protect me from this imagined threat you've dreamed up, but Kuroba's a great guy, and he's fine with me just the way I am! No one else can see past these ridiculously over-sized glasses. He accepts me, so…can't you just be happy for me?"

"…I…can see past the glasses too, ya know," Heiji whispered. "I'll always be yer buddy, Kudo, but…I'm worried about you. People don't suddenly just change sexual orientations at the drop of a hat. There's a good chance you're just redirecting your feelings for Nee-chan at him because he was there to pick you up when she pulled the rug out from under ya. I don't want to see you get hurt, Kudo, and I just have a feeling that this guy's trouble."

Conan took a deep breath and sighed, finally breaking eye contact. He shook his head as he went over to the ticket machine and paid the fair to get back to Beika.

"You're wrong," he mumbled, just a bit of a bite still left in his voice. "But thanks, Hattori. I appreciate you trying to look out for me, but you're wrong about him, so back off, okay?"

"I'd rather have ya steamin' mad at me than getting hurt by that guy, Kudo," Heiji declared his resolve. "I care about ya too much."

"Idiot," Conan muttered, shaking his head.

…

"You can let go of the tie now; I'm following you, Kuroba," Saguru sighed.

Kaito reluctantly released the necktie and kept walking in silence.

"You said it looked like I wanted to talk about something, but, really, you're the one that needs to do the talking, right?" the blonde prodded gently. "What did you wish to discuss with me?"

Kaito shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"You were fine before, so I'm guessing that that dunce Hattori Heiji said something that upset you. Would you care to discuss, or did you just want me to distract you by blathering on about something unrelated?" Saguru laid out the options. "Really, it's fine with me either way, Kuroba."

"He…He must of thought I was serious when I was playing around pretending to flirt with Tantei-kun. He called me…a cradle-robbing fag…among other things. Isn't that crazy?" Kaito tried to laugh it off, but he did a poor job of it.

"Kuroba," Hakuba gasped, mentally making plans to sock the Osakan teen at the next opportunity.

"I tried to tell him he was wrong, but he just wouldn't listen," Kaito continued to keep up the farce.

"He _is_ wrong," Saguru stressed, reaching out and putting a firm hand on his companion's shoulder. "He doesn't know you, Kuroba, and he doesn't have a handle on the situation. There's nothing wrong or perverse about your feelings for Edogawa-kun, Kuroba, so don't you start second-guessing yourself now."

Slowly Kaito turned and stared at his friend as if he were too scared to really believe what the other teen was saying.

Saguru only smiled and strengthened his grip.

"…You knew about how I feel about Tantei-kun?" Kaito continued to stare incredulously, mouth agape.

Saguru nodded with a bit of a chuckle.

"And you don't have a problem with your friend being a pedo?" The brunette raised an eyebrow in utter disbelief.

"Kuroba, you're not a pedophile." The detective shook his head as he rolled his eyes. "Edogawa-kun is…special. I mean, you don't feel that way about normal children, do you?"

Kaito cringed at the thought, crinkling his nose and sticking out his tongue in disgust. "Eew! Geez. No!"

"Alright then." Saguru gave Kaito a solid clap on the back and began walking once more. "There's your answer: Hattori is an idiot, Edogawa-kun is a teenager stuck in a child's body, and you're perfectly normal."

"Wait. You knew?!" Kaito's eyes went as wide as watermelons.

"Knew what?" Suddenly the great detective wasn't following.

"About Tantei-kun getting shrunk down to kiddy-size."

Hakuba blinked several times as his brain attempted to reconcile nonsense with reality. "No," he finally replied. "No, I didn't. I was merely using a figure of speech, but now everything makes so much sense and, still, no sense at all, all at the same time. Are you quite serious, Kuroba? Edogawa-kun is actually around our age? How the deuce is that even possible?"

Kaito's mouth formed a little "o", and he chuckled nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck. "…Um…Yeah. So… You know Kudo Shinichi?"

Saguru nodded, still not sure if he was willing to believe all this. "You're not serious."

Kaito smiled sheepishly.

"Well. This will take some time to wrap my head around, but, for now, I suppose I shall just be thankful that my best friend isn't a pervert. Honestly, you have no idea how challenging it's been trying to be so open-mined about your relationship with…Kudo-san up until this point, Kuroba."

Kaito just laughed, patting the detective on the shoulder. "You're a good man, Haku-chan. Thank you."

"Yes, yes. I'm just glad to see you feeling better." Saguru gave Kaito a playful nudge. "Will you be staying for dinner? I'll need to call Baaya."

"Can I stay the night?" Kaito looked up hopefully at his friend with puppy-dog eyes.

Saguru bit his lip, trying to withstand the power of Kaito's signature move, but, before long, he sighed and caved. "Very well…. Who am I kidding? We'd be happy to have you. Baaya delights in fattening you up, and I quite enjoy your company."

"Haha. Thanks, Haku-chan. You're seriously the best."

…

Shinichi was about to pull his hair out. He'd wanted to call Kaito and do damage control for Hattori's mess, but he couldn't very well have the private conversation he'd wanted on a crowded train with said mess-maker sitting right beside him.

Then, as soon as they'd gotten back to the agency, the Mouris had hauled him off to a fancy dinner with a client. It was getting late, and Shinichi saw no sign of him being able to get some solitude any time soon, so he settled for a text message.

"Hey, are you okay? I am _so_ sorry about what Hattori said to you today. He's an f-ing idiot, so just ignore everything he said. I'm really sorry, Kuroba."

Ran gave him a little nudge and cleared her throat, letting him know that he was strongly discouraged from texting at the table, especially in front of a client.

A few minutes later his phone buzzed and he rushed to read Kaito's reply, much to Ran's disapproval (she informed him with a very stern look).

"It's the person I like," Conan blurted out in his own defense and then found himself slightly surprised.

He liked Kaito.

He _liked_ Kaito, and his subconscious had known it before he had. Hn.

Pushing this revelation aside, he glanced down at the message, holding his breath.

"Me? I'm awesome. B) :P Totally kicking Hakuba's ass at Mario Party, and I have a feeling he'll be challenging me to Mortal Combat next in order to regain his honor. But, yeah, don't worry about it. It's not a big deal. You've got a good friend…. Besides, I may have insinuated that his intentions towards you were dubious, he had cream puff-filling for brains, did it with large animals, and that his father was a hamster. ^.^; So don't worry too much. We're cool. XOXO"

Conan had to put a hand over his mouth to help contain the oncoming giggle fit. Once it had subsided, he looked at the last line of the text and frowned. He wondered if "XO" was anything like that "cute mark" that had caused him so much trouble and embarrassment a few months prior. He decided to ask. The worst Kaito could do was "lol" at him via text.

"Oh. Good. I'm glad we're good. Good luck with Mortal Combat. I'm rooting for you…. By the way, what does 'XO' mean?"

"#^_^# 'Hugs and kisses', Darling. ^_~"

"Oh. 'Kay. See ya later, then." Conan quickly snapped his phone shut as his entire face turned fuchsia.

…

"So, what are you and Aoko doing tonight for Christmas Eve~?" Kaito positively leered at the blonde detective, tittering away like a small chimp.

"Breaking up," Hakuba replied matter-of-factly, turning the page of his French novel without missing a beat.

Kaito nearly fell off the back of Saguru's couch but managed to regain his balance at the last second. "Wait. What?! What?"

"I'm breaking up with her," the blonde repeated in a completely neutral tone of voice.

"Why? What happened?!" Kaito hopped down to sit next to his friend, casting Hakuba a curious glance.

Saguru shrugged, slowly closing the book and setting it down beside him. He turned to look at Kaito. "She doesn't love me. She doesn't even like me all that much, Kuroba, and I'm done being in a one-sided relationship. She's just been using me the entire time, and I've had enough of it. If she wants to try to make you jealous, she can do it with some other guy. I'm through waiting around for her to look at me and actually see _me_ for once."

Kaito looked down at his house slippers and sighed. "You're right. You deserve better…but…I don't want to see her with someone else. I finally got okay with her being with you because it was _you_, but…wait. Why would Aoko want to make me jealous? You said that before…."

"Dunce," Saguru chuckled softly, giving the magician a little whap upside the head. "She _loves_ you. You're the one she wants to be with." With a sad smile, the detective nodded. "I've learned my lesson. I know when to bow out gracefully. I'm stepping out of the way, so what are you going to do, Kuroba? I know you have your thing with Kudo-san, but…you still care for Aoko-chan. You've been in love with her for a long time."

"She…she loves me?" Kaito mouthed the words over and over again, as if they were some complicated phrase he was trying to puzzle out.

"Yes, idiot. She loves you. Now what are you going to do about it?"

Kaito just shook his head. "I…can't. It's too…She'd hate me if…I couldn't…" He covered his face with his hands and stayed like that in silence for nearly a full minute. Then he slowly looked up at Saguru, face stained with utter confliction. "Hakuba, what am I going to do? I love her too."

…

Old Man Mouri was at his favorite bar's Christmas party, so you could bet he wouldn't be home until extremely early the next morning, and Ran was on a date with her boyfriend. She planned on spending the night at Sonoko's afterwards (at least, that was what she had told them. Shinichi had a sneaking suspicion that she had other plans for a romantic Christmas Eve), so that left the detective agency empty and free for Conan and Kaito's use.

With them both dateless and recently heartbroken, they had decided that having a guy's night of junk food and Disney movies would fit the bill nicely.

Shinichi had really been looking forward to it, but…the magician seemed a little off tonight, like his mind was elsewhere.

Kaito mindlessly munched on a piece of almond pocky, not really seeing the movie on the screen.

"Who's your favorite character?" Conan asked, not so sure that his companion would answer.

"Genie," Kaito mumbled around the pocky in his mouth.

"…Kuroba, that was last movie. We're watching Lion King now."

"Oh." The magician blinked rapidly, coming out of the haze. "I meant Timon."

Conan paused the DVD. "Hey, are you okay?"

Kaito shook his head with a sheepish smile. "You'll never guess what Hakuba told me today."

"He's not planning to propose to Aoko-san, is he?!" Conan gasped. He didn't think the other detective would be so boneheadedly insensitive.

"Nope. He's breaking up with her." Kaito shrugged, bringing his knees up to hug them to his chest.

"Why? What happened?" Conan wasn't so sure he wanted to pry, but Kaito looked like he needed to get it off his chest.

"She's in love with me."

Conan's heart sank. "Oh. Well…well, that's good, right? I mean…" He was really torn between being a good, supportive friend and being a teenage guy who had just had his heart royally smashed for a second time. "I mean…you've loved her since you were five. So…are you going to ask her out?"

"It's…not that simple," Kaito sighed, scratching his head and messing up his hair even more. "Yeah, I love Aoko, but…there's also…and…"

Kaito trailed off and turned to look solemnly at the little detective. "I have a bad habit of running around at night wearing a white tuxedo."

Conan waited for the other boy to continue and start making sense. When this did not occur, he replied, "Yeah? So? What does that have to do with Aoko-san?"

"I…you knew I was…?"

Conan sent his crush a glare that said, "What? Do you think I'm an idiot? I've known from the beginning."

Kaito laughed sheepishly. "…Of course you knew. You kept calling me 'Kid' when we first met, after all, but…Tantei-kun, you're okay with it?" Kaito gazed hopefully at the shrunken sleuth.

Conan just rolled his eyes. "Duh, you numbskull. Now what's all this about? You told me Aoko-san loves you, I asked if you were gonna ask her out, and then you started singing like a bird about your night job. What the hell gives?"

"…I…" Kaito gulped. "Aoko and I won't work out. I've kept too big a secret from her. I've betrayed her, and if she ever found out… So…I've been really thinking about this, and I've decided that I can't keep lying to and keeping secrets from the people I care about…. So…I'm the Kaitou Kid."

"But what are you going to do about Aoko-san?" Conan cut straight to the chase, trying to contain his frustration.

Kaito stared blankly in surprise for a moment. "Nothing."

"'Nothing'?!" Conan positively gawked. "You've been in love with this girl for more than a decade, and you're not going to do _anything_?! Why?!"

"B-Because, Tantei-kun…No. _Conan_… No, that's not right either…. Shinichi…" Kaito gazed anxiously at the smaller teen, fear filling his eyes. He closed them with a sigh and muttered, "Oh, what the heck?"

Then he tackled the little detective, pushing him down and pinning him to the couch, crushing their lips together.

"K-Kaito," Conan panted when the other boy finally pulled back.

"Because I'm crazy about you, Kudo Shinichi," Kaito whispered, eyes screwed shut.

Conan looked up at Kaito in a daze as he tried to even out his breath and slow his racing heartbeat. He was having a hard time even processing what had just happened until he suddenly felt hot tears on his cheeks.

He blinked several times, touching his fingers to the damp spots. Then it all started coming together as his brain came out of the fog. He reached up and brushed Kaito's tears away with his thumb, cupping the magician's cheeks.

"I'm crazy about you too, Kaito," he declared as he lifted his head to brush their lips together once more. "Merry Christmas, Kaito."

"Merry Christmas, Shinichi," Kaito returned, rubbing his nose against Conan's in an Eskimo kiss. "Hey, does this mean we're dating now?"

"Sure," Conan chuckled, running his hands through Kaito's hair.

"Then we need to eat cake!" Kaito exclaimed, pushing himself up and bounding towards the door. "It's not too late to celebrate our first Christmas together as a couple, and in order to do that, we have to have Christmas cake or Kentucky Fried Chicken, but since I don't eat other birds, it has to be cake. Am I right, or am I right?"

The great detective bit his lip in thought. Apparently the Kaitou Kid considered himself a species of bird. Hm. "Kaito, it's late. I don't think we'll be finding cake at this time of night."

"Not even at a convenience store?" The magician's bottom lip began to quiver.

"Would you really want to go out in this cold for cake? How about we just make our own? I think we've got all the ingredients upstairs."

"Seriously?" Kaito's eyes lit up, and, without further ado, the duo raced up the stairs to the kitchen.

Truthfully, the cake came out doughy and lopsided, and they really only ended up making a mess, but they had a wonderful time flicking flour at one another, splattering each other with batter, and then taking turns licking said batter off.

Afterwards, they took their pitiable end product downstairs to the office and ate it while sitting on top of Mouri's desk as they watched the snow fall.

"This must be how it feels to be inside a snow globe," Kaito mused, kicking his feet back and forth as he took a huge bite of whipped cream, getting it on the end of his nose.

Conan had to suppress a giggle as Kaito attempted to lick the cream off. "You're such a little kid. Here." He reached up and took Kaito's face in his hands, licking the white spot off himself.

Kaito took the opportunity to steal a long, lazy kiss. He smiled contentedly as they parted. "What do you want for Christmas, Shin-chan?"

"I don't need anything, Kaito. I already got everything I wanted." Conan smiled softly, playing with one of Kaito's bangs.

"Aw, you're such a sweetie, but does that mean you don't want me to tie a ribbon around my body and give you myself for Christmas?" Kaito pretended to pout.

"Idiot," Conan lightly teased. "I've already got you. You don't have to give yourself to me."

Kaito smirked. "Let me paint a picture for you. When I said I would be tying a ribbon around my body and giving myself to you for Christmas, I meant that that ribbon would be the _only_ thing I'd be wearing. Get it now?"

Conan's face turned red like a poinsettia and he gulped as he nodded slowly. "T-T-That's a little…I don't think I'm ready to…"

Kaito giggled, giving his boyfriend's cheek a little pinch. "Kidding. Kidding. I don't think I'm ready to…either, so…" Kaito's own cheeks took on a peachy hue. "So…seriously, what do you want for Christmas, Shinichi?"

"Coffee. Let's go get coffee together and then walk around the shops by the station," the detective suggested. "It'd be enough just to spend the day with you, and maybe we can pick out your present while we're out. Unless you already know what you want?"

Kaito shook his head, a happy little smile on his lips. "Same thing as you. A cup of hot chocolate and some window-shopping sounds heavenly."

"Awesome," Conan agreed, setting his plate down so that he could hop off of the desk. "Come on, it's late; time for bed."

"Un." With a little nod, Kaito followed obediently.

"You only need to set out one futon," Kaito informed, stopping his host as Conan began pulling out additional bedding.

Conan cocked his head to the side, but his confusion quickly dissipated as Kaito scooped him up and snuggled up under the covers with him still in Kaito's arms.

"Night, night~!" Kaito sang, giving Conan's ear a soft nip.

"Goodnight, Kaito," Conan mumbled, settling in.

It was silent for a good minute or two before Kaito's voice cut through the darkness in a meek, nervous whisper. "I…I love you, Shinichi."

"I love you too, Kaito," Conan chuckled, finding his crush's bashfulness to be adorable. "Now go to sleep. I'll make you chocolate crepes tomorrow for breakfast."

"Chocolate crepes?" Kaito's eyes flew open. "Marry me!"

"O-Okay," Conan gulped.

Kaito pulled back to study the other teen's face. "Yeah? Seriously?"

"Uh…un," Conan replied, trying to burrow down further into the covers to hide his quickly reddening face. "Yeah. Eventually.

"N-No. Wait. I wanna do it properly," Kaito insisted. "So…let's not rush things. Yeah?"

"Yeah," Conan breathed, burring his face in Kaito's chest. "Someday, when I propose, I'll be sure to do it right, but, for now, just get some sleep, Kaito."

"Un!" Kaito could hardly contain the giant grin plastered upon his face as he lay back down, hugging his beloved to his chest.

He couldn't believe his luck. It was all too wonderful. Kaito had fully expected to be rejected and ridiculed when he'd confessed, but the day had turned out far better than he could have imagined. He was madly in love and loved madly in return.

Sure, there would still be issues, like the age difference, the possibility of their families not accepting them, and the whole gay thing in general, but from what Kaito had heard of the Kudos, it sounded like they would be okay with it so long as their son was happy, and Kaito had at least one supportive friend he could count on. Maybe he was a little naïve, but Kaito was a hopeless romantic deep down. He believed in the power of love, and he believed that together he and Shinichi could get through anything.

The

End

...

:*:

(v*)(*v)

Mikau: Penguins! Kissing under the mistletoe. Hopefully the beak renders correctly. If not, it's one of those greater than/less than signs. Anyway, that's all folks. Hopefully you enjoyed it. Please let me know you're thoughts on the way out. Take care, everyone, and have a wonderful Christmas/Wednesday!


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